Told Ya So!

It has been an interesting month for Harper-inspired nonsense. Well, come to think of it, it's always been interesting, as he’s been mastering said caveat ever since he was elected. It really has been happening more frequently as each week passes by, but I digress. What makes this month’s nonsense far more interesting than those that preceded it, is that it is so close to election time; and with said election just days away, you've gotta wonder whether he is just doing this to rouse the conservative muppets, or give one last “screw you” to the rest of us. Let's get into this shit.

The Niqab debate. What a debacle. This smoke screen, carefully-constructed divide-and-conquer strategy, or completely justified talking point—whatever it is—has put the common rabble in quite a tizzy. The Liberals and NDP stand beside the Charter, and the idea that anyone, regardless of faith, sexual orientation, or ethnicity, should be able to express their religious freedoms. They feel as if the debate is manufactured, and essentially a moot issue—especially during election time— and does more to distract Canadians than inform them. The Conservatives—a.k.a. Harper— on the other hand, seem to be taking this bold approach, so as to rally the splintered conservative votership who are still on the fence. By exploiting Zunera Ishaq’s story—and subsequent notoriety in the media— Harper is able to frame the narrative and control the discourse, thereby rallying citizens with conservative values, but who don’t share his views on policy. I hate to admit it, but the plan is genius.

Stunt No.2— Harper’s response to the Syrian refugee crisis. In totally characteristic, albeit undemocratic fashion, the PMO has all of a sudden decided that they are the authority in decision-making related to citizenship and refugee admission policy. Even though we have three federally-operated departments responsible for approving and overseeing the admittance of refugees, Harper has basically taken the stance that his office should unilaterally be involved in this process because, well, screw you and Bill C-51. Na-na-na boo-boo. No longer does the PMO regard the guidance of the United Nations, CSIS, CBSA, and CIC. Instead they would rather rely on the “expertise” of bureaucrats and yuppies, whose day-to-day activities involve sitting on Parliament Hill, covering up their whoopsies, and pretending they understand complex issues outside of their own political agendas.

Let’s all pray that the majority of “enlightened” Canadians see past this bullshit and tick the “anything-but-Harper” box on their ballots come October 19th.

GEORDIN CROSBIE

Just a 23-year-old Irishman stuck in the city that fun forgot, cutting through the bullshit one story at a time. My hobbies include pretending I’m a scribbler, navigating sobriety, and consuming lemon-flavoured libations. I imagine myself becoming a famous writer one day, but if that doesn’t work out, I can always fall back on cooking professionally and screaming at people.

SPINE ONLINE

Algonquin’s School of Media and Design offers a two-year program in Professional Writing, designed for people who have an aptitude and passion for writing and a willingness to practise their craft in a variety of media. This is the online portion of that media training. Graduates will possess exemplary writing skills for both print media and electronic platforms, and this is their practice ground.